Walking the Trail

My in-laws have a wonderful trail on their property that I love to walk when we visit.  It feels otherworldly to be encapsulated by trees and shadows, with only a bit of sky visible between branches. St. Francis welcomes our entrance, and at night, you can see dozens of fireflies burping their soft light.  I am so glad I'll get to walk the trail again in a few weeks.

Eclipsed

Sunday was an eventful day in Lubbock.  It was the last day to view a solar eclipse that the U.S. hasn't seen in 18 years.  To celebrate, we had a picnic in the park where we could watch the eclipse. However, I got caught up watching other things ...

 I know I won't wait another 18 years to have a picnic like that.

Horny Toad

A few weeks ago we had a little surprise waiting for us by the front door:  a Texas horned lizard or "horny toad."  This little fellow was so docile and sweet.  His face, skin, and feet were full of wonderful detail.

  

David had never seen one in person and was enthralled.  I hadn't seen one since an afternoon playing on my back porch in Post when I was 4.  Once an endangered species, they are now protected. We both wondered why this rare little creature picked our front porch for a rest.

 

We put him in our front garden, where he quickly disappeared, but that hasn't stopped us from pausing there everyday to see if he's still with us.